Blog

In this letter:

Celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and community service.

Inauguration of President Biden and Vice President Harris.

Board of Trustees discuss return of TK, Kindergarten, Special Day class, TK-6th and Face-to-Face instruction.

We have been planning for some of our students to return to face-to-face instruction beginning today, but due to the continual increase in COVID-19 cases, directions from Los Angeles County Department of Public Health advised that students remain on distance learning.  
Parents of students who were to return to in-person instruction received notice of this change last week.  Our current return date for those students is January 25th, but the Board will consider this again at its next meeting, January 19th.  Attached you will find the advice letter from LACDPH for your information.

During this week, you should receive your children’s first semester report of progress.  In addition, the most recent assessment of their academic progress from the NWEA will be sent to you. Our schools are closed for winter break, but classes will resume on January 11, 2021.  At this point, we anticipate that some students will return to transitional kindergarten and kindergarten classes on campus.  Some TK-6th grade students in mild/moderate special day classes will also return to classes on campus.

As we enter the week of Thanksgiving, it is an opportunity to express my gratitude for allowing our staff to work with you and your family.  Though the past 8+ months have been unprecedented and unexpected, I am thankful for our Board, our staff and all our parents for the collective work that has been done to ensure that our students still receive the best possible educational experience.  I am hopeful that you and your family will have an opportunity to spend some quality time together, while taking a break from school. 

In this post:

* COVID-19 Update on School Reopening Plans
* Westside Wire Update
* School Lunches
* Student Technology
* Additional Resources

On Wednesday, November 11th we pause to recognize the sacrifices made by members of our military while protecting our freedoms throughout the history of our nation. If you have children in grades TK-2nd, you should have received information about a survey being conducted to help with processing our waiver request to Los Angeles County Public Health that may enable us to reopen our schools in hybrid presentation for students in the primary grades.

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors has provided an additional option for some students to return to face-to-face instruction under some specific conditions. To apply for the waiver, the district must consult with parents and the unions.  So that we can reach as many parents as possible, we ask for your response to a survey being sent to the email address we have on file.

The first quarter of our school year has concluded and by now you should have received your children’s progress reports.  As you review with your children their progress about their academic endeavors this year, please be sure to contact the children’s teacher if you have concerns. This week's topics include: Annual Updates to Enrollment Data, Voting, Update from the Tech Department, LA County Dept. of Public Health Reopening, Board Meetings, and Child Nutrition

In the upcoming weeks, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health will be making visits to our school sites to confirm that we are compliant with the directives we’ve been given.  The visitors will also be ensuring that all staff members on site know what the protocols are, and how to protect both students and staff as they return to the campus.

We seem to be moving slowly into fall. Unfortunately, the heat has continued to make fighting the fires in California difficult, and the smoke has produced unhealthy air quality throughout our state and especially in our Valley. We are approaching the end of our first quarter of the school year, and you should anticipate receiving a progress report for each of your children in the mail following the close of this first quarter on October 9th.

We are especially concerned for our neighbors in the Antelope Valley who have been victims of several fires, and we join others in trying to support efforts to help families safely return home. Congratulations and thanks for many years of dedicated service to members of our staff who are choosing to retire at the end of September.  We will certainly miss our colleagues and our students and families will miss the special ways in which they have supported our students.

Congratulations to Westside Union School District, which was honored by @AVAQMD with the annual William J. Pete Knight Achievement In Reducing Emissions (AIRE) award.The Board will hold its semi-monthly meeting on Tuesday, September 15th. Items on the agenda include recognition of additional retirees, ACSA Golden Apple Award, IDEA Academy Presentation, Unaudited Actuals, Learning Continuity Plan, and current orders from LA County Public Health.

Questions answered from the Advisory Collaborative Groups on August 25th.

I hope you are enjoying your Labor Day weekend, taking time to spend it together in some of the activities you like as a family. As we end our first month of the school year, please use this extra day to take a break from school and enjoy the family time. We do appreciate all that you and your children are doing to make this school year as effective for student learning as possible.

We have now completed our first 3 weeks of the school year, and again, I thank you and our staff for your patience and understanding as we continue to conduct our classes online. As you are no doubt aware, again the process of containing COVID-19 in California and Los Angeles County are undergoing changes, which will likely impact our return to face-to-face instruction. We are doing our best to stay abreast of the changes as they occur, and we appreciate your cooperation throughout this ever-changing process.

As we begin our 3rd week of the school year, I want to again thank you for your understanding, cooperation, partnership, and dedication as together we conquer the challenges of the many forms of distance learning. I am also thankful for the dedicated members of our teaching and support staff who are working hard everyday to make the learning engaging and meaningful to our students.

Like with any new strategy, we have a few issues to address:

This has been a most unusual first week of school for students, staff and parents alike. We appreciate everyone’s cooperation, patience, and understanding as we continue to work on the delivery of instruction through online means. If you are having technical issues with logging on, getting into PowerSchool or other programs, please contact your child’s principal for additional assistance and also check the District website for instructional videos made especially to assist you and your child.

Questions have been asked regarding attendance. Teachers are taking attendance every day near the same time as they take the daily lunch count. Find out more in the blog...

The opening of our 20-21 school year will certainly be different than any opening we’ve experienced in the past.  With orders from our Governor and Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, all class instruction must be through distance learning for now. All students will start with distance learning on Monday, August 10th.

Welcome to our new school year.  We are excited to have you as part of Westside Union School District.

On Friday, July 17th, Governor Gavin Newsom ordered all school campuses to remain physically closed in counties on the state’s monitoring list due to spiking COVID-19 cases. This includes Los Angeles County. Schools cannot re-open until their county has come off the state’s monitoring list for 14 consecutive days.

Our Board held a special meeting on Monday, July 20th to listen to your concerns, answer your questions, and determine how the 20-21 school year will open for our students given the Governor’s Order. Read more in this post.

As we all know, these unprecedented times have made us reconsider how we go about educating our students, and the impressive levels of public participation show that we are, indeed, all in this together. After nearly six hours of presentation and discussion, the Board voted unanimously that in the best interest of the health and safety of our students and staff to implement the following for our opening on August 5, 2020

Thank you for your kind comments this past week, whether it was about our IT staff checking and sorting everything or related to our staff engaging with you when you came to the schools. This update contains information on a variety of recent issues, including 8th grade promotion, progress reports and Chromebooks.

The health and safety of our students, staff and community remain foremost for all of us. As you may have heard, Governor Newsom, Superintendent of Public Instruction Thurmond, and LACOE Superintendent Durado encouraged school boards to consider extending the closure of our school buildings for the remainder of this school year to reduce the spread of COVID-19. In emergency session on April 3, the WUSD Board members voted unanimously to extend the current closure through June 4, 2020, the end of our academic year.

Updates provided to FAQ as of April 3, 2020 @10:25am.

Westside Union School District’s highest priority is the safety and well-being of our students, staff and community members. With that in mind, we are striving to provide a steady flow of information to families and help them make good, healthful decisions. Many parents have asked questions regarding the COVID-19 pandemic, what we are doing about the situation, and what may occur in the future.

Like you, Westside Union School District is committed to providing a safe learning environment for our students and staff, as well as protecting the health and wellbeing of the community as a whole.

This morning, the Westside Union School District Board of Trustees met and unanimously voted to extend the closure of all Westside schools until May 5.

Students who participate in the school lunch program will be able to pick up a "grab and go" meal for breakfast and lunch at the following schools between 11:00 a.m. and noon, Monday –Friday, March 16-20, 2020 at limited locations.

Our schools will be closed from Monday, March 16-20, 2020. Thereafter, we will begin our scheduled Spring Break from March 23-April 3, 2020. Essential personnel may be on duty as needed, but for all others, you should not plan to come onto your campus or work site. Your supervisor will notify you if you need to be present for work.

Los Angeles County Office of Education News Release - Closure of Schools

We will close all of our schools and offices beginning Monday, March 16, 2020 until Friday, March 20, 2020. Our spring break begins on Monday, March 23 and concludes on April 3, 2020. The Board will meet again on March 31, 2020 to determine if our schools will reopen on Monday, April 6, 2020.

At this time, the risk of exposure to Westside students, staff and volunteers is extremely limited but caution should, nonetheless, be observed.